The Indian ambassador to Russia said on Sunday India would continue buying oil from the country they will receive “the best deal”, to protect the interests of its population of 1.4 billion.
In an interview with Russian news agency TASS, Vinay Kumar said US President Donald Trump’s decision to impose 25 percent penalty on top of a 25 percent tariffs for purchasing Russian oil and weapons, is “unfair, unreasonable and unjustified.”
India increased imports of Russian crude, which is cheap, ever since the Ukraine war put a significant strain on Moscow’s ties with Washington DC and affected negotiations on a trade deal. In 2024, Russian crude added up to 35 to 40 percent of the South Asian nation’s oil imports, up from 3 percent in 2021.
According to US Vice President JD Vance, Trump had announced secondary tariffs on India to apply “aggressive economic leverage” on Russia and force it to stop the war in Ukraine, reports BBC.
The United States has criticised India purchasing Russian oil as it alleges it is helping fund the war in Ukraine—an accusation Delhi has denied.
The ambassador’s comments follow Indian Foreign Minister S Jaishankar’s defence of the country’s trade ties with Russia. Jaishankar pointed out on Saturday that China is not facing secondary tariffs from the US despite being the largest importer of Russian oil.
The Foreign Minister had stressed India will continue maintaining independence in its decision-making.
India maintains good relations with both Russia and Ukraine, and has called for a “peaceful resolution” to the ongoing war.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had visited Ukraine in 2024, and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin is expected to pay a visit to the Asian nation later this year.